Apple TV’s “Invasion” has been one of the platform’s most divisive programs for a while now — and season three (unfortunately) cements its status as a show that continuously promises more than it’s capable of delivering. The series, which follows five people across the globe as they each tackle a global alien invasion in their own way, was presented as an innovative science fiction drama. It was characterized by a slow-burning tempo and its focus on everyday events rather than the spectacular, and was defended by fans as an audacious alternative to action-driven sci-fi programming. However, many critics lamented that it was pretentious and boring.
Season three was expected to be the tipping point, the payoff that would consolidate years of disparate storylines. In practice, however, it reveals just how shallow and inconsistent the show has always been. What could have been a breakout season instead feels like more of the same: meandering, drawn out and emotionally redundant.
This season’s convergence of characters, which was supposed to be its high point, instead underscores the show’s weaknesses. Over the course of the series, dozens of characters and storylines have been unveiled, with barely any crossover. Trevante (Shamier Anderson, “Soulmates”), a traumatized veteran who has been a main character since season one, spends the majority of the series stuck in a cycle of guilt and indecision. In season three, rather than growing through his internal and external battles, his character remains stagnant, stuck having the same cyclical discussions about duty and trauma. One such plot line involves him stepping up as the reluctant leader of a survivor group, only to abandon them time and time again when his personal demons resurface. Instead of well-written development, viewers receive circular scenarios that make Trevante a less compelling character the more screen time he gets.
Mitsuki (Shioli Kutsuna, “Sanctuary”), the brilliant Japanese scientist who has been the series’ most consistently interesting character so far, uniquely communicates with the invaders and brings small victories to the humans through her scientific prowess. However, this season, her character fares no better than Trevante. Season three pushes her into the forefront of the alien mythology, but the writing never gives her narrative the clarity it needs. Her grief and guilt over her girlfriend Hinata (Rinko Kikuchi, “The Hot Spot”) who died in the initial invasion, are powerful on the page, but the show continues to replay this trauma ad nauseam, further diminishing its impact with every repetition. In another storyline, she attempts to “communicate” with the alien hive-mind, which should have been a compelling watch. Instead, this plot line drags on through multiple episodes with little payoff for the story or characters. By the midpoint of the season, Mitsuki feels less like a character and more like a tool the writers only use to burn time.
In the meantime, other characters are simply shoved to the side or squandered. Caspar (Billy Barratt, “Bring Her Back”), once at the center of the aliens’ psychic life and human communication, is now handled more like an afterthought. His fate is infuriatingly opaque, with half-clues and sporadic sightings that never become anything tangible. Jamila (India Brown, “Honey Bunch”), once the fulcrum of the school group subplot (the invasion from the perspective of schoolchildren), now wanders through episodes aimlessly. Even the characters who are brought in as potential future leads disappear for stretches, only to resurface briefly with little explanation. The ensemble structure that once gave “Invasion” depth now just feels like narrative sprawl — the season has too many arcs competing for too little resolution.
The alien mythology, which should be the show’s backbone, continues to be underwhelming. Season three introduces us to “apex forms” and “sleeper portals,” but these concepts are tossed into the mix without sufficient grounding. The alien hive-mind pretension, once ripe with real philosophical exploration, instead devolves into vague, circular discussions that suggest depth without truly delivering it. Far from peeling back layers of the alien threat, the season doubles down on obscurity. The writers seem to worry that nailing down the mythology too firmly will make the show less interesting, but the reverse is true. Caspar’s telepathic bond with the aliens, one of early seasons’ most compelling mysteries, is all but forgotten here — another suggestion that “Invasion” prefers to leave things dangling instead of yielding answers.
Even the series’ action, which ought to offer a counterpoint to the show’s introspective mood, is sluggish. A midseason gun battle between alien apex forms would have been a highlight if it weren’t for the murkily-staged action, unimaginative choreography and choppy editing. The season’s plot centerpiece, an assault on the alien mothership, should have been the season’s climax, but instead plays out with baffling restraint. Any building tension is immediately diffused by repetitive cutaways to whispered discussions or slow-motion character glares. For a show about humanity’s survival in the face of extinction, season three rarely gets around to feeling urgent.
Ultimately, “Invasion” still can’t balance its conflicting identities: It wants to be both a serious exploration of human trauma and a sweeping sci-fi epic, but it keeps sacrificing one for the other. Characters are left behind without explanation to make room for alien mythology that barely advances, while the underlying mysteries are infuriatingly vague. If this was supposed to be the show’s redemption, then the invasion has already failed.
Daily Arts Writer Tiffany McKalko can be reached at tmckalko@umich.edu.
